1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to casino gaming machines. More particularly, the present invention relates to slot machines. The gaming activity of the present invention provides methods and apparatus for play of a slot machine game, wherein a player is enabled to strategically select pay lines based on a partial outcome of the game.
2. State of the Art
Gaming establishments, or casinos, have proliferated in recent years and compete against each other to attract players. The casinos must provide entertaining and exciting casino games to attract new players and retain established players. Repetitively attracting players becomes increasingly difficult because the traditional casino games become well played and tiresome for the players. To maintain player interest, the gaming industry must continually develop new and entertaining games.
The majority of the new games are variations on standard casino gaming machines, such as the ubiquitous reel-type slot machine, which historically has been among the most lucrative sources of income for a casino. The chief drawback of slot machines is that minimal player participation is required in achieving the final outcome of the slot machine game. The conventional slot machine in use today is typically a stand-alone device intended to be played by a single player. The player simply inserts money and actuates the device by pushing a button or pulling a lever, while the device selects the outcome and informs the player if he or she wins or loses. The lack of player participation in the game leads to boredom and, ultimately, the loss of the player as a revenue source. Although other gaming activities and machines have evolved with the advances of newer technology in casino gaming machines, the development of newer, more entertaining slot machines has lagged behind other recent technological advances.
In an attempt to attract players, some improvements have been incorporated into slot machines to increase their entertainment value. Among these improvements is the use of a plurality and variety of pay lines to increase player interest. For example, the selection of multiple pay lines by a player increases the excitement of the slot machine because more than one winning combination may be achieved. The increased complexity of multiple pay lines sparks player interest as the player learns to recognize the various winning pay lines. The development of multiple pay line slot machines is disclosed in several U.S. patents. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,099,722 to Rodesch, dated Jul. 11, 1978, describes a three-reel slot machine with five pay lines. The pay lines include three horizontal and two diagonal pay lines. U.S. Pat. RE 34,244 to Hagiwara, dated May 11, 1993, describes three vertical pay lines in addition to the five pay lines described by Rodesch. U.S. Pat. No. 5,807,172 to Piechowiak, dated Sep. 15, 1998, describes a 3×3 display of indicia wherein the pay lines include multi-directional diagonal pay lines.
The patents described above describe slot machine games where the pay lines are selected by a player prior to learning the final outcome of the game. Typically, the multiple pay lines of slot machine games are simultaneously played by inserting more money than for playing a single pay line. The pay line configurations are determined by the gaming machine and the odds of the player winning depend, at least in part, on the number of pay lines activated by the player.
Other advances in slot machines have been employed to spark player interest. These advances include enhancing the perceived payoff value of the game by using scatter-pay wins and unusually shaped pay lines in addition to the use of multiple pay lines. The more varied pay line configurations as well as scatter-pay wins may be readily implemented when the mechanical reels of traditional slot machines are replaced with video simulations of the reels and their movement. These video simulations provide a wide range of indicia (e.g., symbols) displayed by the slot machine reels and are enabled by the use of a microprocessor in association with suitable video graphics, as known in the art. Winning combinations are determined as a result of matching the game's pay table with the presence on each pay line of indicia selected by random number generation. These machines afford more opportunities to win through the random outcome generated by the microprocessor and displayed as video-simulated reels. When placing bets on multiple pay lines, the player increases his chances of achieving a winning combination by wagering more money on multiple pay lines.
Further efforts have also been implemented to make slot machine play more attractive to casino patrons. These efforts include systems which offer a plurality of slot machines which are electronically networked together and congregated about a common area. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,907 to Hagiwara et al. (“Hagiwara”), a system is disclosed in which a plurality of subordinate slot machines have their outputs connected to a main machine for controlling the game and having a large display thereon. The large display on the main machine is identical to the display shown on each subordinate machine and allows the players and spectators to observe the progress and results of a game. Hagiwara asserts that the simulated team play creates “a feeling of togetherness” which attracts more players and consequently brings about more profit to the slot machine owner.
To increase the opportunity to win, some players prefer to play several slot machines (or gaming machines of other various types) at once. The strategy employed by these players is that the odds of achieving a winning combination will be increased by generating more spins of the slot machines in a given period of time. Typically, a player playing two or more gaming machines at once will move back and forth between the machines to deposit money, wager credits and initiate play. Since the player is playing multiple games at once, the amounts of money cumulatively wagered by the player will typically be greater. However, there are several disadvantages to this mode of play. First, players may find moving between several slot machines inconvenient and ergonomically difficult, particularly when a player desires to engage in an increased rate of play. Second, during peak hours, players playing multiple machines may prohibit other casino patrons from partaking in and enjoying games of chance on those “partially” occupied machines. Third, from a casino operator's point of view, multiple machines used for concurrent, but slower, play by a single player may take up valuable floor space that could otherwise be used to optimize revenues.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,890,962 to Takemoto (“Takemoto”) attempts to solve certain of the aforementioned disadvantages of a single player playing multiple machines by disclosing a video slot machine display having multiple individual display parts which each make up a 3×3 display of indicia (each display part having nine symbols arranged to simulate three reels). In one exemplary embodiment, each of the display parts has five available pay lines. Takemoto also discloses a game where a player may select one or more individual display parts and any number of available pay lines for simultaneous play. Takemoto further discloses allowing players to bet lines extending to symbols which span across two or more selected displays. In a further embodiment, Takemoto discloses a method of play that may result in a “big win,” wherein each of a predetermined number of continuous display parts in the horizontal, vertical or diagonal direction is determined to have individual wins. While advantageously providing new types of games and reducing floor space that might otherwise be used by a single player attempting concurrent play on multiple gaming machines, the disclosure of Takemoto is somewhat limited in terms of display options, player options and methods of play. For example, the device of Takemoto is restricted to slot machine play where all simulated reels are configured to be activated simultaneously and the individual display parts are taught to be in fixed positions in an array on the gaming machine display.
Although the above-described patents have increased the complexity and sparked some new interest in conventional slot machine games, the cited patents do not allow a player to strategize or tactically determine the outcome of a single game. Therefore, a method of playing a slot machine game that enables a player to use his or her mental skills to strategically and tactically select pay lines that produce the greatest probability of achieving a favorable outcome is needed and would be an improvement in the art.